New meditation garden dedicated at ceremony Tuesday afternoon

A dedication ceremony was held for the meditation garden located at the Honor Program House at Tusculum College on Tuesday, Sept. 23. The garden was a service project of several Tusculum classes, including students in the biology and visual arts programs. The garden was designed not only as a beautiful campus space, but as an ongoing project in support of ASafeHarborHome, an organization that assists domestic abuse victims and homeless with a disability. With the help of Office of Institutional Advancement, the biology class solicited donations to purchase plants and supplies. With each group donation, a plant identification marker will be placed to represent organization or departments/group on campus. Students from the “Service Learning in the Arts” class repaired, cleaned and re-tiled the benches; repainted the bird feeder; and created the stepping stone that is a feature in the garden. Students in service-learning classes taught by Robin Fife have worked with ASafeHarborHome for several years and continue to work the non-profit organization.

 

The meditation garden was created as a partnership between Tusculum College and ASafeHarborHome.

Lilly Gonzelez and Daniel Velez

The dedication ceremony included a welcome from Dr. Nancy B. Moody, president of Tusculum College. Denise Coffey, student intern at ASafeHarborHome, shared what the meditation garden means to her. Dr.Melissa Keller, assistant professor of biology; Aurora Pope, assistant professor of art, and Fife described what their students did as part of the project. Daniel Velez, chief executive officer of ASafeHarborHome, Inc., and his wife, Lilly Gonzalez, expressed their appreciation of the Tusculum students and College community for their work. Velez said it is an example of people working together to meet a common goal to better the lives of others. Tusculum Chaplain Mark Stokes offered a prayer of dedication for the garden. Rev. Ronda Gentry, director of the Center for Civic Advancement, invited those in attendance to explore the garden.

 

Lowe's of Greeneville provided donations of some of the landscaping elements used in the garden.